A Stupid Purse
by Pokemon67
Summary: Summary: The Doctor's strange behavior puzzles Martha. As does his strange purchases. She follows him one night to discover just what he's up to.


**Me: My first Dr. Who Fanfiction! This takes place in season three, after Episode 7 (that's where I am). I miss Rose sooooo much! I like Martha, but I really want Rose to come back (she is. I believe, I believe…).**

 **Hope you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: I do not own Doctor Who. I know nothing about aliens except what I've watched in the show. Purely fictional. I am NOT an alien. Promise. *nervous chuckle***

Martha was curious about the Doctor.

Days were spent traveling through time, getting caught up in some sort of alien invasion, which was all well and good. Nights were spent on the Tardis, sleeping (Tardis time, of course. The Tardis had its own way of keeping hours). At least, Martha slept. She assumed the Doctor did, but judging by the circles under his eyes, and the items scattered about the control room, she had re-thought her assumption.

''What is all this?'' Martha asked one morning as she entered the room. She had run down the hall when she heard loud crashing noises, followed by the Doctor swearing.

The Doctor was leaping around the control center, which had smoke coming out of it in several places. ''What?''

''What's wrong with it?'' Martha asked.

''Ugh, it just needs—'' The Doctor was cut off another loud noise from the Tardis, and stepped back quickly to cover his face. ''—a good kick!''

Martha watched motionless as the Doctor kicked the console with unusual aggression. ''You quite done?''

The Doctor sighed and sat down on the bench. ''Yeah, I'm done.''

''Alright then.'' Martha, deciding to try and change the subject, reverted back to her original question. ''What's all this?'' She motioned to the shopping bags on the floor, which looked as if they had been thrown down.

The Doctor straightened up. ''Oh, just some things I had to get,'' he said dismisivly. ''Hey!''

He snatched a bag from Martha's hands as she began to look through it. ''You had to buy a turquoise purse?'' She asked, trying to stop the grin from spreading on her face. ''What, does your sonic screwdriver need a new home?''

The Doctor bent down and gathered up all the other bags. ''What I buy is none of your business,'' he said, his bad mood returning. ''And I would thank you to not touch my property!'' He snatched another bag out of Martha's hands.

''I was going to help you bring them to your room,'' Martha said defensively.

''Well, don't.''

''What's the matter with you?''

''Nothing.''

''Quite the nothing to make you buy female merchandise and kick the Tardis.''

''She had it coming. Kinda like you if you don't shut up.''

''Fine then. Am I allowed to ask where we are going today at least?''

''Sorry, did you miss the smoke? I have to fix the Tardis before we can go anywhere.''

Martha frowned and stopped walking right outside the Doctor's bedroom door. ''Then are we still home?'' She asked.

The Doctor tried to open his door while still holding his shopping bags. ''No.''

''Well then where are we? Floating around in space?''

''No.''

Martha clamped her hand over the door knob, making the Doctor turn to her to glare. ''Then where are we?''

''Just somewhere, alright? Now for the universes sake, Martha, just go away and we will go somewhere tomorrow! Alright?'' With that he kicked his door open, and slammed it behind him.

Martha stared at the closed door with her mouth hanging open, holding the wrist that she managed to jerk away before the Doctor unceremoniously opened his door. What was his problem?

…

Martha hated being told to do something without any explanation for it. But as she wasn't keen on possibly falling though space, she decided not to go peeking outside the Tardis. Besides, the Doctor had returned to the console room, trying to rectify whatever problem the Tardis had.

She spent most of the day in her room, trying to forget about her argument with the Doctor. Whatever his problem was, it wasn't fair for him to take it out on her. At the end of the day, Martha decided to walk around the Tardis.

Martha had no idea how large the Tardis actually was. She doubted even the Doctor knew (he had gotten lost on his way to the kitchen one to many times to be the expert that he claimed). It was fun to wonder around and explore it.

Matha left her bedroom and walked down the hallway. She paused at the last room. This was Rose's room.

 _Rose._ Martha felt as if she were some ghost, haunting the Tardis and Doctor at every turn. Martha kept inadvertently stumbling across bits of Rose everywhere. The pile of books someone had set aside to read in the library that Martha had decided to red were put there by Rose. The cute jacket she had found in the huge Tardis closet had been Rose's. The box of cookies in the kitchen Martha had decided to finish had been Rose's. Martha felt as if she were intruding on someone else's life, and at any minute Rose was going to pop up and demand an explanation.

Martha shook her head and kept walking down the hallway. She had been in Rose's room once, and had been quickly redirected by the Doctor to her current room. She had no desire to explore the room of the girl she felt she was replacing.

Martha walked a bit more before discovering the Doctor's room. Here she stopped. The banging and whirring of tools from the console room could be heard from where she stood. He'd never need to know she was in his room. And with her angry at his mistreatment of her, Martha felt justified.

She carefully opened the door and looked inside.

A queen sized bed was to her left, and on the far wall was a large table with all sorts of tools and gadgets on it. The bed was made, but wrinkled, as if someone repeatedly laid on it. On the floor, were dozens of shopping bags.

Puzzled, Martha entered the room. She looked at the shopping bags. By the design and logo, Martha could tell they were from the same store. She reached into one of the bags at the back of the pile and pulled out a turquoise purse.

''What?'' Martha said aloud. After quickly looking into some of the other bags, Martha straightened up. ''Identical,'' She said incredulously. ''The exact same purchases. What on earth is he up to?''

Martha left the Doctor's room a few minutes later, no longer angry but bewildered by this strange behavior.

…

Martha sat in the library, reading. Even though she felt haunted by Rose, she had to admit the girl had good taste in books.

She heard the clicking of the Doctor's shoes on the floor as he entered the room. She didn't look up from her book, even when he was standing right in front of her. Realizing she wasn't going to be the one to speak first, the Doctor hesitantly sat down on the couch next to her. ''Martha—''

''Oh, am I allowed to speak?'' Martha asked, putting her book down. She put more venom in her tone the she actually felt. All her angry had turned into confusion when she saw his bedroom, but that didn't mean she was going to let him off easy. Martha Jones was known for many things, but forgiving wasn't one of them.

The Doctor sighed. ''I'm sorry. I shouldn't have been so mean—''

''—Or mean at all,'' Martha corrected.

''—Or mean at all.''

''—Or rude, or insulting, or—''

''I believe the term mean covered all that, thanks.''

''There it is again.''

''Your not making this very easy!'' The Doctor sighed again, and let out a small laugh. ''So, we good?''

Martha pretended to think it over. ''Yeah, we're good.''

The Doctor smiled his big smile. ''Good! And as I fixed the Tardis, tomorrow we shall head out into the unknown!"

Martha laughed. ''Sounds good.''

''Good night Martha!'' And with that, the Doctor sped off.

…

Martha had intended to go to bed after she finished her chapter. But she hadn't planned on the plot twist her book had taken, so she ended up staying in the library until she finished it. ''Drat that Rose,'' she muttered as she shifted though the pile of books. ''Making me read that. Now my heart's shattered, happy? You better have put the sequel in here…''

Martha continued to search when she heard footsteps.

She stiffened. Was it the Doctor? No, why would he be making such an effort to be quiet? And where would he be going?

Carefully, Martha exited the library and followed the sound.

When she reached the console room, she caught sight of the person's back. It _was_ the Doctor. He was flipping some controls on the Tardis. The iconic sound of the Tardis time traveling filled the room, but it didn't last long. Then, the doctor went to the door, and left.

Martha quickly followed.

Sunlight burned Martha's eyes as she stepped out of the Tardis. A quick glance around told her they were on earth in some back road. The Doctor was a few feet ahead of her, so Martha quickened her pace.

They took a bus downtown. The Doctor must have been preoccupied, because he hadn't spotted Martha yet. After a few stops, the Doctor got off. Martha followed him down the street, but with all the people, she quickly lost sight of him.

''Drat it all,'' she exclaimed, searching around. ''How am I going to—'' she paused as she noticed a shop in front of her. The sign matched that of the bags she had seen in the Doctor's room.

Martha entered the store. It was nice and large, with a lot of pretty displays. She wondered around for a while, keeping her eyes peeled for the Doctor. Fortunately, she had an idea of where to go.

There he was, by a display of purses, listening as a shop girl talked to him.

''—I think this purse would suit your daughter's needs, sir. The color is very popular among our customers.''

''Well, then. I'll trust your judgment then miss— what's your name?''

''Tyler, sir.''

''Miss Tyler. Thank you very much for all your help.''

''Your welcome sir. It was my pleasure.'' The shop girl smiled and walked away.

Martha watched as the Doctor paid for another copy of his purchases. She walked behind him slowly, trailing him all the way back to the Tardis. His demeanor was quite different from the way there. He looked so lost.

He went into the Tardis first. Martha caught the door before it closed completely. ''That's it?''

The Doctor jumped and turned in surprise. ''Martha?!''

''Yeah, course it's me. Who else?''

The Doctor narrowed his eyes. ''You followed me?''

Martha raised her eyebrows. ''Okay, you must be off your game. Yeah, I followed you. I also happen to know you have plenty of purses and such— all exactly the same— and you don't have a daughter. Unless you have decided to officially adopt your screw driver.''

The Doctor closed his eyes and sighed. He tossed his shopping bag on the floor and sat down on the Tardis seat, his head in his hands.

Martha leaned on the railing for a moment, watching him. ''You want to explain what you've been doing?''

The Doctor was silent for another moment. He ran his hands through his hair, a sign of his nervousness. Finally, he began. ''I can't see her anymore because she is dead in this world,'' he stated. ''So I looked into her timeline and found a harmless day— an ordinary day. No holidays, no plans, no special sales where the 100th customer gets a free tote bag or anything. Just a regular day for her.''

''For who?'' Martha asked.

''Rose,'' he answered.

Martha was taken aback. ''You mean that shop girl? Thatwas _Rose_?''

The Doctor nodded miserably.

''So, you just visit, and buy the same things from her. Always the same, so you don't change anything?''

''A young Lucy Carmen was supposed to buy that purse, but she hit another girl on the playground and was punished. The purse would just end up thrown away because Diana will trip and spill her pink lemonade on the entire display tomorrow.''

Martha shook her head and shuffled her feet. ''You traced the fate of the purse?'' she asked.

The Doctor nodded. ''That's her display,'' he said. ''Only thing I could buy without upsetting the timeline.''

Martha motioned to the bags. ''What about those other things?''

The Doctor waved his hand. ''Cheap trinkets; half that stuff gets lost on the truck on the way to the store.''

''How often do you go?'' Martha asked.

''Every night,'' The Doctor admitted stiffly.

''The same day, same hour,'' Martha said. ''That's why the Tardis acted up, didn't?'' The Doctor nodded. ''Why?''

''What do you mean?''

''I've seen you moping around here,'' Martha said. ''You're sad and brooding, clearly sleep deprived, and yet you still go. It's making you miserable. Why?''

The Doctor didn't reply. His posture was stiff and he had that look of angry about him. He was like a pot— Martha wasn't sure if he'd boil over or simmer down.

Finally, in a cold, hard tone, he responded. ''The last time I saw her, I never got to tell her just how much she meant to me. I never got to tell her how much I appreciated her, how much she helped me. She was there when I really needed someone, and I will never get to see her again to tell her so. That's why I go and buy that stupid purse and those stupid trinkets for a daughter I don't have anymore. So I can say Thanks. Thanks for all your help. Because without Rose, Martha, I would've died a long time ago.''

An uncomfortable silence settled over them. Martha swallowed hard. ''What happened?'' she asked. ''Why can't you ever see her again?''

''Because she doesn't exist in this world anymore,'' The Doctor said, a vacant, faraway look on his face. ''I killed her.''

''You couldn't have,'' Martha objected.

''She had to leave this world 'cause of me. I should've been faster. Should've done _something_ different. My actions lead to her being declared dead in this world, so I'm the one that killed her.''

''But you said she's alive.''

''Not in this world.'' Before Martha could question him further, he stood up. ''Well, good night, Martha.''

Martha just stood there as he left the console room, taking his bags with him. She waited a few minutes before taking her leave so she wouldn't run into the Doctor.

On her way to her room, Martha passed the Doctor's door. She paused in front of it, debating on whether or not to check on him. She raised her hand to knock, but stopped herself. No, he needed to be alone. He didn't want her, he wanted Rose. Rose, the curvy, blonde shop girl. And there was no way for him to have her.

Martha retired to her own room. She had to accept she could never take Rose's place. She wasn't Rose, she was Martha. The shadow Rose had left over the Doctor could never be replaced. And Martha had to stop letting it cover her. She couldn't be Rose, but she could be Martha. Martha, the Doctor's friend. And that would have to be enough.

 **Me: I hope you liked it! Please review and tell me what you thought!**

 **Happy Writing, Earthlings! I mean, good people!**


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